Mark covered bat houses on a Sunday page back on October 15, 2023.  So it is not surprising to see Rivera (Mark) use them in this story. That’s good planning on Rivera’s part. Otherwise, today’s strip adds nothing new to Cherry’s bats story. Filler strips like this one are annoying because they do not move the plot along or reveal new information. They just artificially expand the story to use up more calendar time because it is easier than having to create more stories.

We already know Ranger Shaw has a reclusive life style. But since he told Mark he was glad to help assemble the bat houses (panel 1), it makes no sense why Mark suggests (panel 3) the Ranger come over to learn how to do it again. Mark fairly gushes as if he is a showing off a school shop project to his parents. Rivera might want to study crafting puns from her comic strip predecessors, such as Darby Conley’s Get Fuzzy and Stephen Pastis’s Pearls Before Swine. Or maybe just quit trying.

Art Dept. Sometimes I wonder how Rivera puts these strips together. Out-of-proportion figures in Mark Trail are not unique, but do stand out. First, Ranger Shaw in panel 1 is suddenly so much broader than Mark, as if he is being played by John Candy. It isn’t as if he is simply “in front” of Mark and “closer to us.” He stands behind the bat houses held by Mark! Second, Mark’s head in panel 3 is mysteriously and laughably smaller than his body, to say nothing of his right arm being about 6 feet long, based on the angle of the forearm. Sure, these may be picky criticisms, but it’s my job as unofficial critical comic strip analyst and part-time know-it-all to tell it like I think it is (or isn’t). Feel free to quibble!